


Reconciliation

by sartiebodyshots



Category: Falling Skies
Genre: Gen, season 5
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-12
Updated: 2015-07-13
Packaged: 2018-04-08 22:12:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4322706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sartiebodyshots/pseuds/sartiebodyshots
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cochise and Matt hatch a plan to force Hal and Ben to talk out their problems because Matt is sick of this and Cochise has issues.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Matthew, may I talk to you about a serious matter?” Cochise asks.

            Matt squints at him.  “Only if you stop calling me Matthew.  It’s Matt.”

            “Of course, Matt,” Cochise says.  “I apologize.”

            “Don’t worry,” Matt says.  He rocks back and forth a little when Cochise doesn’t say anything.  “What do you wanna talk about?”

            “I wish to discuss your brothers and their recent fights,” Cochise says.

            “Oh,” Matt says, drooping a little.  This is, like, his least favorite subject.  At least Dad going crazy means he gets to go on missions.  Hal and Ben fighting has no upsides.  “It sucks.  This is even worse than when Hal kept throwing Ben’s action figures on the roof so he kept stealing Hal’s homework and lying about it.  Dad had to buy a ladder.”

            Stealing Hal’s homework had actually been a pretty smart plan because for a while, Hal had just assumed he lost it.

            Cochise nods a little, wide eyed, and Matt is pretty sure that he lost him.  “That is unfortunate.  I wish for your assistance.” 

            “Assistance for what?” Matt asks. 

            “You know much more about your brothers and human behaviors than I do.  I wish for your help in repairing their relationship,” Cochise says.  “I do not believe I can do this alone.”

            Matt pauses, thinking.  “I really miss when they were mostly getting along.  It sucks now.  They’re being so dumb and they won’t even talk about it!”  He crosses his arms, annoyed at his brothers.

            “Do you have a suggestion about how I can encourage them to talk?” Cochise says.  “I do not believe that locating a ladder will be useful in this instance.”

            “I remember that sometimes Mom would lock them in a room,” Matt says.  “She’d leave some water and food in there, lure them into the room, lock it up, and tell them they were stuck until they talked to each other.”

            “Did it work?” Cochise asks, intrigued. 

            “Well, they’re not still trapped in the dining room, are they?” Matt asks, because duh.

            “They are not, but from what I have learned of your mother, she would not leave your brothers in a room when it would put them in severe danger, such as during an alien invasion,” Cochise says.

            “Maybe, maybe not,” Matt says.  “She was really strict when it came to them not leaving the room until they worked out their problems.”

            “And this is a human method of conflict resolution?” Cochise asks.

            “It’s usually the only way to get them to talk,” Matt says.  “You gotta stay outside the door to make sure they don’t physically fight or fake make up, though.  They try that.”

            “I will monitor them,” Cochise says.  He inclines his head.  “Thank you for your assistance.”

            “Can I help?” Matt asks. 

            “Are you certain?” Cochise asks.  “It may be unpleasant to listen to them argue.”

            “Didn’t I just tell you that Hal threw Ben’s action figures on the roof?” Matt says.  “I’ve heard them argue plenty of times.  Besides, you’re gonna need a human for this.  Trust me.”

            Cochise rests a hand on his shoulder.  “I trust you highly.  Thank you for the offer of assistance.”

            Matt grins.  He’s glad that Cochise trusts him enough to _really_ help and not just give advice.  Grabbing his arm, he tugs Cochise along.  “Okay, first thing we have to do is find a room…”


	2. Chapter 2

            Ben drums his fingers on the table impatiently.  Cochise had told him to meet him there fifteen minutes ago, but Ben hasn’t seen hide nor hair of him.  He has no idea what Cochise even wants from him, considering the room he’s in is empty except two chairs, a table, and some snacks.  There isn’t even a window.

            Footsteps approach and Ben looks up to see Hal and Matt standing in the doorway.

            “Why’s he here?  I thought we were playing a game,” Hal asks.

            Matt points to Ben.  “You guys are gonna talk.” 

            “What?” Ben asks, getting up.  “No way.”

            Cochise appears behind them and he gently pushes Hal inside.  “Your youngest brother has informed me that this is how your mother sometimes resolved conflicts between you two.  You will remain in this room until you have resolved your problem.”

            “Come on, buddy, tell Cochise to let us go,” Hal pleads.

            Matt shakes his head.  “It sucks when you guys fight.  I’m gonna help Cochise.” 

            Hal slumps his shoulders as Matt and Cochise both back away and close the door. 

            “You should’ve made a run for it,” Ben says, nodding at the door and sitting back down. 

            “And you shouldn’t’ve kissed my girlfriend,” Hal says, coming to sit in the other chair.  “Then, we wouldn’t be in here at all.”

            Ben sighs and glares at the ceiling.  “Are you going to be mad about that forever?  One mistake and that’s it?”

            “It wasn’t one mistake Ben!  You fell in love with my girlfriend and made out with her twice,” Hal says angrily. 

            Ben stews in silence for a while. 

            “Why didn’t you just say something?” Hal asks eventually.  “Tell me what was going on?”

            Ben looks at him with a raised eyebrow.  “Like what?  ‘Hey, Hal I accidentally fell in love with your girlfriend while you were gone?’  In what universe would that ever be a good conversation to start with you?”

            “It’s better than this one.  It’s better than an ‘I made you break up with your girlfriend and now you’re miserable’ conversation,” Hal says.

            Ben frowns at him.  “Is that what you think this conversation is gonna be?”

            “What else?” Hal asks.

            “I didn’t make you break up with Maggie.  I didn’t make you do anything,” Ben says. 

            “You made her fall in love with you!  How am I supposed to date someone who’s also in love with my brother?” Hal says.

            “Hey, I didn’t _make_ her love me; the spikes did,” Ben says.  “I was never going to say anything or do anything.”

            “Maybe if it only happened once, I could believe that,” Hal says.  “But you made out with her twice and then started acting all weird and protective, like she was _your_ girlfriend.”

            Ben sighs and looks away.  This is not a conversation he has ever wanted to have.  He gets up and paces, feeling his face flush.  Maybe Cochise doesn’t have the same resolve that Mom did.  He goes over and bangs on the door.  “Let us out.”

            There’s a pause and Ben tries jiggling the doorknob to no avail.

            “Matt has informed me that we cannot allow you out yet,” Cochise’s voice comes from the other side of the door.

Ben slumps his shoulders and leans against the wall, sliding to the ground so he can avoid going back over to sit by Hal.

“C’mon, Ben, talk to me,” Hal says.

“You're gonna hit me again,” Ben says miserably. 

“I'll try not to,” Hal offers.

At least he's honest.  “I thought she loved me, okay?  I didn't think that it was the spikes.  I thought maybe she had just loved me all along, but just hadn't been able to admit it.  The spikes just got her to admit what had been true all along.”

There's a pause and then Hal explodes in laughter.  Ben sighs and waits for him to shut up. 

“And then, what?  You were just gonna go riding off into the sunset with my girlfriend anyway?” Hal eventually manages to ask. 

Ben shrugs.  “It's not my finest moment, okay?  I get that.  But I figured that if it would make Maggie happy, maybe that would be okay eventually.”

“You're unbelievable, you know that?” Hal asks eventually.  He gets up, starts pacing.  “You thought it'd be okay to get with my girlfriend while she was my girlfriend.”

Ben shrugs a little because, well, he wants to move on from this topic ASAP.  “I'm sorry, okay?  There's nothing I can do to change what happened, but I'm not going to make the mistake of thinking she’s actually interested in me again.  I'm sorry.”

Hal stops pacing and turns to face him.  “Fine.”

Ben sighs.  “But you should know that the reason why she was so susceptible to the spikes was because she was mad at you.  You can't blame all of this on me.” 

Hal frowns.  “What do you mean?”

“Did she really agree to have the spikes put in?” Ben asks quietly.  He's been wondering about this for a while. 

“… Why are you asking?” Hal asks.

“Because when she woke up, I could feel her anger, disgust, and surprise.  I don't know- maybe that's normal- but it didn't feel like she knew it was happening,” Ben says.

Hal crosses his arms defensively and Ben knows that he's hit a nerve.  “So what if she didn't want the transplant?  It saved her life!”

Ben swallows hard and stares at the ceiling unhappily.  Hal dragged him into this without even telling him.  As much as he wants Maggie to be alive, he never would have agreed to the transplant if he had known that Maggie didn’t want the spikes.

“Because she said no, Hal, that's why,” Ben says.  “And it would be terrible if she had died, but at least she would have died a person.  At least she would have died as herself.  Now she could still die, but not knowing what she is.”

“Shut up!” Hal yells. “I couldn't just let her die, and if you really loved her, you'd feel the same!”

“I've spent four years with these spikes, knowing that at any minute some alien force could take me over and dealing with weird mood swings and not being human and all kinds of things, and it’s terrifying.  But at least I could be mad at the Espheni for what they did.  I could hate them,” Ben says, sighing.  “This isn’t an easy adjustment to make and you forced it on her, and then you got spooked when things got hard.  Which probably extra sucks for her because when you went off and tried to kill us all and made out with Karen, she stood by you and never doubted you.  Plenty of people were ready to kill you if they had to, but not me, Maggie, or Matt.”

Pain flashes across Hal’s face and Ben knows that’s kind of a low blow, but he’s pretty sure that it’s a necessary one. 

“Karen was totally in control of me!” Hal protests weakly and his voice began to catch.  “I tried so hard to stop, but I couldn’t.  I don’t even remember…”

“And we’ve both tried to stop our connection to each other, and we’ve both tried to keep our romantic feelings to ourselves- because it is really damn weird to feel just how in love with you she is.  And it would probably be easier if you would apologize to her and talk to her about it,” Ben says.  “I’m sure you guys talked after what happened to Karen.”

“We eventually shot Karen, you know,” Hal says.

Ben looks up at him, pressing his lips together.  “Would that make you feel better?” he eventually asks.  “Do you just want me totally out of your life forever?  Because I am so alone these days, that if that’s what it would take for a happily ever after for at least you and Maggie, it’d be worth it.”

“Don’t talk like that, Ben,” Hal says, frowning at him. 

“Why not?  It’s true.  You’re gonna hate me forever, Jimmy and Deni and Lexi are dead, Matt’s always liked you best anyway, and Dad’s gone off the deep end.  Anytime Maggie tries to talk to me you interrupt.  I thought maybe I could be friends with Caitlin, but then I had to murder her brother, so probably not.  Half of the people here still aren’t sure about my loyalties.  So, yeah, I helped screw up you and Maggie, and if disappearing is the best way I can help fix it…” He shrugs.  “Why not?  Just… talk to her, okay?” 

Hal comes and squats in front of Ben.  He looks at him hard, and Ben looks up at him, afraid.  When Ben had offered to disappear, Ben hadn’t meant for Hal to strangle him right here and now.  That could be a little traumatic for Matt. 

“I’m sorry,” Hal says quietly.  “I’m sorry I didn’t notice how alone you’ve been.  I’m your older brother, and I should be here for you.”

“You had every reason to be mad at me,” Ben says.  “It’s okay.”

Hal wraps his arms around Ben tightly and Ben squeezes back.  “We’re gonna figure things out, okay?  We’re gonna be okay.”

Ben blinks away the tears forming in his eyes.  “Promise?”

“Yeah,” Hal says.  “We’ve still got a lot to talk about, but I didn’t realize how complicated and hard this is for both of you.  I didn’t realize that Maggie was so mad about what happened.”

“About what you did,” Ben says.  “About what you did to her.  Being in love with her and wanting to save her life doesn’t make it okay.”

Hal swallows and nods.  “You’re right.  I need to apologize to Maggie for what I put her through, especially because she told me not to.”

“And you’re right,” Ben says.  “It was really shitty of me to think that dating Maggie would be okay, even if she loved me instead of you.” 

“We both messed up,” Hal says, pulling back and looking and him seriously, “and we’re both going to have work to make things okay with each other.  But no more talking about how it’d be okay for you to disappear, okay?  Because that’s not true.”

Ben grins.  “Okay.”  He gets up and crosses the room, grabbing the snacks off the table.  Twinkies.  Matt and Cochise left them Twinkies.  He throws one over to Hal.  “Let’s snack while we figure the rest of this out.”

“My smarty pants little brother,” Hal says, smiling tentatively as he pats the seat next to him. 

Ben comes and sits right next to him, unwrapping the Twinkie.  “My dumb jock older brother.”

It’s going to be a long afternoon, but it’s going to be okay.


	3. Chapter 3

“Why are you doing this?” Matt asks after they have spent a substantial period of time outside the room, waiting for his brothers to reconcile. 

“What?” Cochise asks, looking down at where Matt is sitting in the dirt. 

“Why do you wanna help my brothers so bad?” Matt asks.  “Because of Dad?”

Cochise inhales sharply, considering the possibilities.  Tom is a simple excuse, but he does not wish to lie to Matt.  He values Matt and believes that he deserves the truth.

“I also had a biological brother with whom I was quite close,” Cochise says.  He sits so he is level with Matt.

“Really?” Matt asks.  “Is he cool?  Can he come to Earth?”

“He does not experience any body temperature, as he was killed in this war, so far away from here,” Cochise says. 

“Your brother died?” Matt asks quietly, looking up at him with a sad look on his face. 

“Yes, he did,” Cochise says, “and the final time that I spoke to him, I said many things that I regret.  We fought, as we had done many times before, and we would have made up, as we had many times before.  However, he was killed before we could reconcile.  I continue to think about that conversation, and I do not wish for Hal or Ben to experience this haunting feeling.”

“You think that Hal or Ben is gonna die?” Matt asks, still quiet but no longer looking at him.

“I do not think it is inevitable, but I do believe that it is a possibility,” Cochise says.  “In the middle of war it is always a possibility.”

“I’m glad they’re not going to die hating each other,” Matt says. 

It is unpleasant to live knowing that the person you care about the most died angry at you, but that is not what Matt needs to hear. 

Cochise rests a hand on Matt’s arm as he has witnessed many humans do.  Hopefully, this is a comforting gesture.  “I will do everything that I can to ensure your family survives this war.  All of you.”

Matt suddenly turns and wraps his arms around Cochise, who is startled, but returns the embrace. 

“I’m sorry about your brother,” Matt mumbles.  “That sucks.”

“I am comforted by the fact that those we love never truly leave us,” Cochise says.  “I will always know how much my brother cared for me, even when we were fighting with each other.” 

Matt nods a little against his chest.  “Yeah.  That’s good.”

“He was a good person and a good Volm,” Cochise says wistfully.  “Very few Volm understand why we maintained a close relationship into adulthood, but I admired him immensely.”

“You should tell us about him sometime.  All of us,” Matt says.  “We’d get it.”

“You would not become bored?” Cochise asks.  “You often become bored during your father’s stories.”  And Cochise will not talk to anyone about his brother unless they are interested.  It is too easy for him to lose his temper when discussing his brother if people are disrespectful. 

“His stories are nerdy,” Matt says.  “Your brother is important.”

Cochise inclines his head.  “Then I will tell you of my brother one day.”

“Cool,” Matt says. 

There is a soft knocking at the door. 

“We’re okay,” Ben’s voice says.

“What about Hal?” Matt asks. 

“Yeah, I’m here, too,” Hal says, “and we’re good.”

Cochise leans in to Matt.  “Is this another deception?”

“Say something nice about each other,” Matt yells back, getting up. 

“Ben helped me figure something out,” Hal says.  “Something that I messed up.”

“Hal gave me the last Twinkie,” Ben says.  “You know we’re good if Hal is giving up snack food!”

There is an alarming grunting noise and Cochise looks to Matt for his reaction, but he is smiling. 

“This is good?” Cochise asks.

“Yeah, they’re bickering like they always do,” Matt says.  “Not this dumb silent and then mean thing they’ve been doing.”

“So we may open the door?” Cochise asks.

Matt nods his head, so Cochise unlocks the door to see Hal and Ben both standing there with small smiles on their faces.

Matt steps forward and hugs them both.

They lean down and hug him back, and Cochise notices that they are also hugging each other.  Good.  It fills Cochise with a happiness that has been hard to grasp since his brother died.

Matt looks back at Cochise and takes his hand off Ben’s waist to wave at Cochise.  “C’mon.”

“For what?” Cochise asks, confused.

“Family hug, duh,” Matt says.  “You did this.”

Cochise steps hesitantly forward into the empty space between Matt and Ben.  They both immediately wrap their arms around him.

“Thanks, man,” Hal says, grinning at him.

“Yeah, what he said,” Ben says.  “Thank you.”

Cochise inclines his head to hide the blue blush he can feel spreading across his face.  He will thank them later for what they have done for him.


End file.
